The Real War on Obesity - Contesting Knowledge and Meaning in a Public Health Crisis

This book sheds new light on the political battle to define and construct obesity as a policy issue. Through a rich analysis of the debates in Australia and the UK, it develops a nuanced analysis of the competing narratives that actors rely on to make sense of and argue about this issue, and documents how and to what effect they draw on scientific evidence to support their accounts. The real 'war on obesity', it demonstrates, has always been over the meaning and nature of this public health crisis. This insightful work will interest scholars of interpretive policy studies, critical public health and science and technology studies.  

                      

List of contents

Chapter 1. Introducing the real 'war on obesity'.- Part I. Problem definition.- Chapter 2. Debating individual agency.- Chapter 3. Defining the scope.- Chapter 4. Disputing the problem.- Part II. Policy engagement.- Chapter 5. Representing knowledge.- Chapter 6. Claiming knowledge.- Chapter 7. Contesting knowledge.- Chapter 8. Transmitting knowledge.- Chapter 9. Conclusion. 

About the author

John Boswell is Lecturer in Politics at the University of Southampton, UK. He conducts research on democratic governance, health policy and interpretive research methodology.    

                          

Summary

This book sheds new light on the political battle to define and construct obesity as a policy issue. This insightful work will interest scholars of interpretive policy studies, critical public health and science and technology studies.

Product details

• Authors: John Boswell
• Publisher: Springer Palgrave Macmillan
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 01.01.2020
• EAN: 9781349845026
• ISBN: 978-1-349-84502-6
• No. of pages: 224
• Dimensions: 148 mm x 14 mm x 210 mm
• Weight: 316 g
• Illustrations: XIII, 224 p. 6 illus. in color.
• Series: Palgrave Studies in Science, Knowledge and Policy; Palgrave Studies in Science, K; Palgrave Studies in Science, Knowledge and Policy; Palgrave Studies in Science, K; Revisted - Perspektiven der Gender und Queer Studies; Revisited - Perspektiven der Gender und Queer Studies
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Medicine > General; Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political science and political administration; B, Sociology, Medicine, Political Science, Public Health, biotechnology, Politics & government, United Kingdom, Great Britain, Sociology, general, Comparative Politics, Great Britain—Politics and government, British Politics